tonsils out - drawbacks?

[Jokat]

Dd1(3 years old) has got her 4th throat infection since the start of December, had one week of antibiotics, one week off (during which she fell ill again), then two weeks of antibiotics which didn't work so a third week of different ones straight after. Now on a further two week course (and to me it looks like she's not respondong again, even though it's the stuff that worked last time). Yesterday the GP said he'll refer her to an ent specialist to see if she's a candidate for having her tonsils removed. I was very happy to hear this as I find the amount of antibiotics she's had to take (and she was on them several times as a newborn since she was very premature and then throat infections last winter) really worrying. But I do know that the tonsils have a function as well (trying to deal wth colds before they effect the whole system or something like that?). Does anyone know what negative effects their removal could have?

If it is specifically throat infections they may say she isn't a candidate anyway; I remember being told that a tonsillectomy would only prevent tonsillitis and NOT throat infections.

However if she is a clear candidate then I think as long as she is old enough to cope with GA then go for it. The older you are, the harder it is to recover from the procedure, as the tonsils grow harder. A child should recover quite quickly, an adult will be in agony for longer, so I've heard.

I'm 25 and for some reason I've had tonsillitis about 5 times in the last year, I'm considering asking for a referral but dreading the idea of it!

Sorry she's getting ill :(

Dd had hers out at 3, just over 2 years ago. Before that she was on and off antibiotics constantly. Since then she has had just 1 course for an ear infection last year. There is no doubt that her health is greatly improved. it did take her a good 2 weeks to recover from the op though but it definitely has worked out well for us.

O dear, I didn't even realize there is a difference between tonsilitis and a throat infection, I thought one was the Latin word for the other I can't remember the doctors mentioning the word tonsilitis. Her tonsils swell up massively and often have white stuff sitting on them which you can see if she opens up wide enough. Sometimes she has a fever (which at times has been very high) with it. GP said her tonsils are big anyway so every little thing makes them go massive, they almost met in the middle 2 days ago which makes her gag all the time :( The gagging is always the surest sign that the tonsils have come up again. Any suggestions as to whether this is tonsilitis or a throat infection?

itus - swelling of

ectomy - removal of.

Sorry just showing off - that medical terminology qualification not going to waste!

DS had his out at 4yrs - it changed our lives as he was constantly home from nursery being pumped with antibiotics whihc he eventually nbnecame immune to - so now we have issues when he has to have any sort of antibiotics! He eats more, is happier and has not been sick with anything ENTy at all since.

I had mine out 4 years ago and was hell - I wish I had had them out as a child - 32 years of being poorly cannot ever be as bad as what you have if you have them taken out at a young age and it hurts like feck as a gorwn up - DS was eating as soon as he woke up from the GA - I on the other hand didn't eat for a week -felt like bloody swallowing razor blades.

DS had his out when he was 6 so our experience was probably a bit different. He had been ill with tonsilitis on and off for two years. The major factor to consider is the risk of the GA, but DS had no problems and has absolutely thrived since having them out, he's like a different boy .

I had mine out at 22 having spent last yr of uni on antibiotics.

Currently have dd (8) at home with 39 temp and first bout of tonsilitis this school yr. Like the OP, when she was smaller, it was one week on one week off, to the point that we had started to discuss having them out with paed (am in Italy) but she was v reluctant because a) they do tend to grow out of it and b) general anaesthetic at a young age is best not done unless really necessary (so she said)

As I said, she is now 8 and down to about 1 bout a year so atm we've put it on ice.

Bucharest what was it like having them out at 22, please? :)

Also does anyone on this thread have any idea why somebody (me) would suddenly start getting recurrent tonsillitis (septic tonsillitis so they said) after years without it?

Oh Fuzz, poor you. Have no idea sorry, just wanted to offer my sympathy.

Prob like me Fuzz- I had no tonsilitis at all between age (about) 10 and 20 then wham, every month or so. (being pissed at uni /rundown/not eating properly might have been it perhaps...

It wasn't nice, in hospital 2 days, then baaaaaaaaad earache (the throat was nothing compared to the ears, for about a week. Solpadeine kept me sane (and the OLympic Games which were on in the middle of the night at the time!) They wouldn't let you out of hospital until you'd eaten dry toast and shredded wheat in front of them.

Thanks for the replies :)

Yes gone are the days of jelly and ice cream in hospital! If I have a regular sore throat now I always eat crisps. IIRC the scratchy food help by tricking the body to heal itself?

I know what you mean about the ears - every time I am convinced I have an ear infection, it is like somebody stabbing my eardrums with needles!

I think I should ask for a referral... I am scared of the pain but then I worry that it'll get worse and I'll end up still needing the procedure when I'm older and it could potentially be harder.

Interesting that you also went for years without it too. The GP said it might be stress related - ie am run down (very very true) so more susceptible.

DS2 had his tonsils out when he was 4. However this wasn't because of tonsillitis but because they were GINORMOUS and permanently touching at the back. It affected his eating and sleeping and he has improved no end since having them removed. Definitely the best decision in our case.
Last week I took DS3 for a hearing test (another story!) and the doctor who saw us after recommended him to have his tonsils out as they too are ginormous and he gags all the time. Still has to have his food chopped up small.

As a sort of side thing, when DS2 had his tonsils out, his voice changed!! Honestly! Don't know if this has happened to anyone else but it has never gone back to how it was, it's just a bit squeakier!!

Definitely go for it. Think you need to have about 4 or 5 bouts in a year to 'qualify'. Like bucharest I had mine out in early 20s after a very interrupted year at Uni, but I (like my Mum and Grandfather before me) had suffered for years.
Had to eat all manner of crunchy things before they'd let me go, with loooooads of drugs and two weeks of confinement at home, but was the best op ever- made SUCH a difference.

IMO you''ll be saving your LO a lot of pain, anti-bs and time off school/work. Good luck!

I got mine out at the age of 5 and really don't remember a thing about it. That was a long long time ago and I have had no problems at all with sore throats or infections of any kind, so no loss basically.

All I can say having mine out at 12 years and having an awful time with it after! The sooner the better but be aware it does not stop sore throats or throat infections as you would think.

Chirpy, if you're still around, could you explain why you'd still get sore throats / infections after? And would they still need to be treated with ABs or would they just be viral infections? Most of the other posters said their kids were much healthier after having the op, so I assumed having the tonsils out generally means no more throat infections

My DD aged 4 had hers out in March, mainly because they were so huge they were making her snore and have sleep apnoea. She had also had quite a few episodes of tonsillitis. We are not in UK, and she was only allowed ice cream, and other cold soft food for 2 weeks afterwards (unlike current guidelines in UK), but she recovered remarkably quickly and the hardest thing was trying to stop her doing too much tearing about afterwards to avoid bleeding (which is the biggest risk afterwards). Since then, the snoring has stopped and she has more colour in her face, and is not tired all the time, like she used to be. The ENT surgeon told us the tonsils have served their purpose by about the age of 4 anyway. Am very glad we went ahead with it.

Oh, and he also said that they used to think having the tonsils out made chest infections more likely, but this is not the case.

Oh, thank you for that!